Roger Aylworth: Look out, Washington: An invasion is headed your way

In just less than a month, Washington state is going to be the target of a nationwide invasion and I think it is only sporting to give them fair warning.

For a week in late June, bands of happy wanderers from Georgia, Oklahoma, Utah, California, Oregon and even Washington will all converge on this unsuspecting state.

I like to think it is a benign invasion. In previous incursions the only casualties have been among the invaders.

As with all movements that involve transporting personnel, equipment and supplies across vast distances, the logistics have been years, two to be precise, in the planning.

But still, to the people and particularly the authorities in Washington state, I say "Look out! The Aylworths are coming."

Since 2005 the clan has gathered every other year for what we call "Aylapalooza."

The event was born when my dear bride, the saintly Susan, and I realized, with our children spreading across the width of the continent, that without some planning and organization, we would only get together for weddings and funerals.

The grandkids were too young to make weddings common and I'd prefer to avoid funerals on general principles, so the idea of a periodic reunion was hatched.

We began to discuss how and where we could hold the reunion. That's when John, our No. 5 son who has a master's degree in business administration, stepped in to say, "Just wait a darned minute."

He explained we were trying to get parents, with limited incomes, to pile their herds of children into vehicles of doubtful reliability, to drive for at least hours and sometimes days to come to a "reunion."

"Dad, a reunion sounds like a couple of maiden aunts sitting under a tree, drinking lemonade and gossiping about everybody else in the family. If you expect to get this crazy idea off the ground you are going to have to sell it, make it exciting, like a rock concert. It has to have a cool name, something like Aylapalooza," said John, and a tradition was born.

I found out later that just about all of the kids were fearful that Aylapalooza I would be an utter flop. When we came around to Aylapalooza II the fear was that nothing could compare with Aylapalooza I.

By Aylapalooza III the mob seemed confident it was going to be fun and memorable.

As we descend on Washington it will be "Aylapalooza V."

Each year one of the eight families — Susan and I and each of the kids and their spouses — take the lead in organizing the event. This year our No. 4 son, Matthew, is in charge and he has scheduled us in a church-run camp in central Washington.

There will be craziness. There will be singing and a good chance of active sibling rivalry. Cousins will run screaming in every direction, and to my grandfatherly joy, they will cry when they have to say goodbye when they have to return to their own homes.

Roger H. Aylworth is a staff writer with the Enterprise-Record. His column appears every Sunday and he can be reached at 896-7762 or @RogerAylworth on Twitter.